In a statement today, the fest said, “It’s all there. The steps, the sea, the horizon: a man’s ascent towards his dream, in a warm Mediterranean light that turns to gold. As an image it is reminiscent of a timeless quote used at the beginning of Contempt: ‘Cinema replaces our gaze with a world in harmony with our desires.’”

The image is a symbolic choice since the 1963 Contempt is about the making of a film and is regarded as one of the finest ever made in CinemaScope, say fest organizers. Piccoli was screenwriter Paul Javal whose marriage to Camille (Brigitte Bardot) disintegrates during the production of an adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey. Jack Palance and Fritz Lang also starred.

Designed by Hervé Chigioni and graphic designer Gilles Frappier, this is a selection that sees the fest reiterate its “founding commitment: to pay tribute to the history of film, and to welcome new ways of creating and seeing. The steps represent a kind of ascension towards the infinite horizon of a cinema screen.”